Insider Guide to Barbados: Our 5 favourite sights

Wondering what there is to do in Barbados? Here’s five must-visit sights our Travel Counsellors recommend!

Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison

Bridgetown might be bustling but wander among the exquisite colonial buildings in the historic area and you could almost be transported back to the 1800s. Part of the UNESCO World Heritage List, the area features beautifully ornate, imposing buildings ordered by British colonialists in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Spend an afternoon here and learn about Barbados’ complex history as a major port since its settlement by the English almost 400 years ago.

Sunbury Plantation House

With its spectacular façade and carefully tended grounds, this delightful plantation house gives you a taste of life as the owner of a sugar plantation in the 18th and 19th centuries. Built around 1660 by one of the first settlers on the island, Matthew Chapman, and developed by subsequent owners, the house is filled with period furniture and antique prints. When you’ve toured the house, stop off for a spot of afternoon tea in the Courtyard Restaurant!

Mount Gay Distilleries Ltd

A trip to Barbados wouldn’t be complete without a little tasting of what is perhaps their most famous export, rum!

Head to Mount Gay Rum – established in 1703, making it the oldest rum distillery in the world – and learn all about how rum is made, from sugar cane to the coral-filtered water that’s native to Barbados.

Once you’ve discovered the heritage and craftsmanship that goes into making rum, step into the garden, enjoy a traditional Bajan lunch or try a cocktail mixing session!

Andromeda Botanic Gardens

Created in 1954 by renowned horticulturist Iris Bannochie as a private family garden, this wonderful 6-acre garden started life as farmland and was created entirely from scratch. Bequeathed to the Barbados National Trust in 1988, many of the plants were collected by Iris as she travelled across the globe. There are over 600 plant spceimens to discover, as well as streams and ponds.

There’s also a delightful café here so you can tuck into lunch while spotting hummingbirds, monkeys and dragonflies!

Bathsheba Beach

The wild east coast might not be suitable for swimming – the water’s too rough – but the rugged beaches along this stretch are mesmerising. This is Barbados’ top surfers beach so expect pounding waves and pro surfers as you walk along miles of untouched sand and giant rock formations.

Heading to Barbados in November? Watch pro surfers at Bathsheba Soup Bowl, the international surfing competition held here.

Here, we’ve chosen a few of the sights we think you should see while you’re in Barbados. We know that there are many more wonderful experiences to try though! What else should we do when we’re next in Barbados? Let us know in the comments below!

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